The ability to ensure continuous availability of energy despite highly variable
supplies in the environment is a major determinant of the survival of all
species. In higher organisms, including mammals, the capacity to efficiently
store excess energy as triglycerides in adipocytes, from which stored energy
could be rapidly released for use at other sites, was developed. To orchestrate
the processes of energy storage and release, highly integrated systems operating
on several physiological levels have evolved. The adipocyte is no longer
considered a passive bystander, because fat cells actively secrete many members
of the cytokine family, such as leptin, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and
interleukin-6, among other cytokine signals, which influence peripheral fuel
storage, mobilization, and combustion, as well as energy homeostasis. The
existence of a network of adipose tissue signaling pathways, arranged in a
hierarchical fashion, constitutes a metabolic repertoire that enables the
organism to adapt to a wide range of different metabolic challenges, such as
starvation, stress, infection, and short periods of gross energy excess.